Fall in the Air? Try this Creamy Healthy Soup

Fall is in the air, at least here in Texas! Fall brings out the "cooking" side of me--I especially want to put on a pot of chili or soup, or make a batch of cookies. (Yes, dietitians really do eat cookies!)

My husband taught me a great and healthy way to make a creamy vegetable soup--it's a French blended soup. They tend to eat a lot more pureed soups and veggies in Europe than we do here.

Below you'll find a recipe for Basic Creamy Veggie soup from my book Baby Bites. The beauty of it is that you can use virtually any veggie or combo of veggies you feel like--including the bits of leftover veggies in your fridge that you're wondering what to do with!! The colors of the soup vary--from orange to bright green to brown, depending on what you put in them. (I love spinach-carrot or butternut squash-apple) For a nice presentation, swirl a little plain yogurt or sour cream on the top, and float a few croutons.

Basic Creamy Veggie Soup

Yield: about 8 cups (2 liters)

2 pounds (0.9 kilograms) any raw vegetable,
chopped into 1-inch pieces
(smaller for faster cooking) Some vegetables
that work well are asparagus,
broccoli and carrots, spinach and
carrots, and spinach, broccoli, and
carrots

1 pound (500 grams) new potatoes,
peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 to 3 cups (500 to 750 milliliters) liquid
such as cooking liquid, soymilk, rice
milk, breast milk, or formula (If your
baby is one year or older, you can use
whole milk.)

1 to 2 ounces soft pasteurized cheese,
such as cream cheese or Laughing
Cow (optional)

1. Time the cooking of the vegetables
and potatoes according to the vegetables
you use. (For example,
spinach cooks quicker than the
potatoes, so you’d need to start
cooking the potatoes first, then add
the spinach.) Cook in a minimal
amount of liquid until vegetables
and potatoes are tender.

2. Purée in batches in a blender,
adding liquid as needed. If you like,
add cheese while puréeing.

3. Pour soup back in pan and stir to
mix all batches. Reheat if needed.

Excerpted from Baby Bites: Everything You Need to Know About Feeding Babies and Toddlers in One Handy Book

Enjoy!